Small Sur with Peals and Vio Miré

Small Sur and Peals both hail from Baltimore, haven for the East Coast’s underground sounds.  Small Sur’s carefully crafted melodies and somber, yet hopeful lyrics keep a slow pace and offer a deliberately timeless and reflective quality.  With the release of their latest LP Labor, Small Sur stake their claim on Thoreau folk, as we’ll call it. Peals is a collaboration between William Cashion (Future Islands) and Bruce Willen (Double Dagger). A more meditative departure from the art-pop and post-punk of their other projects, Peals’ Thrill Jockey LP Walking Field wraps the listener in successive washes of delicate guitars and ghostly sounds.  Vio/Miré, with arrestingly sincere vocals and precise chamber-folk instrumentation, complete this low-key and lovely lineup.